In a split vote, American Bar Association House of Delegates members on Tuesday elected to uphold a rule requiring law schools to demonstrate DEI standards, but then followed up with a vote allowing another path to removing the standards, in an effort to avoid the Trump administration's threat to strip the ABA of accreditation authority.
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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

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ABA Gives Symbolic Support For Law School DEI Standards

By Emily Sawicki

In a split vote, American Bar Association House of Delegates members on Tuesday elected to uphold a rule requiring law schools to demonstrate DEI standards, but then followed up with a vote allowing another path to removing the standards, in an effort to avoid the Trump administration's threat to strip the ABA of accreditation authority.

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States Warn SEC Against 'Unlawful' Climate Rule Withdrawal

By Jessica Corso

A coalition of Democratic attorneys general are warning the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that its plan to discard a corporate climate disclosure regulation is "unlawful," adding their voices to a chorus of state and local pension funds urging the agency to abandon the planned regulatory withdrawal.

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AGs Can't Yet Get Discovery Into Live Nation's DOJ Deal

By Craig Clough

A New York federal judge on Tuesday rejected a request by some state attorneys general for discovery into the Justice Department's antitrust settlement reached midtrial with Live Nation, ruling that the scope of the request is "unclear" but the AGs can try again with "narrow and targeted requests."

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States Sue Trump Admin Over Aid Recipients' Data Disclosure

By Celeste Bott

New York, Illinois and 20 other states sued the Trump administration Monday to block a new policy that would authorize the disclosure of sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers and immigration status, of their residents receiving temporary financial assistance.

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$15M Deal In PVC Pipe Price-Fixing Case Gets Initial OK

By Celeste Bott

An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday granted early approval to a $15 million deal purchasers struck with plastic pipe system supplier Pipelife Jet Stream, allowing it to soon exit antitrust litigation accusing major polyvinyl chloride pipe producers of fixing prices.

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Analysis

These Firms Are Landing The Most Patent Litigation Work

By Dani Kass

Rabicoff Law and Ramey LLP have maintained their roles as top patent suit filers, while Fish & Richardson PC and Gillam & Smith LP have remained leaders on defense teams, according to Lex Machina's annual patent litigation report.

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POLICY & REGULATION

ABA Seeks Bar Exam Reform Following Tech Failures

By Emily Sawicki

Over the course of its two-day annual meeting, the American Bar Association's policymaking body, the House of Delegates, approved measures to urge further bar exam oversight and backed measures to support law schools at accredited historically Black colleges and universities.

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Senate Reenacts Small Business, Consumer Debt Limit Hikes

By Vince Sullivan

The U.S. Senate passed the Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment Act of 2026 by unanimous consent, taking steps to make permanent the higher debt limits that apply to small business and consumer debtors first implemented during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Analysis

New Patent Suits Surge As PTAB Challenges Get Tougher

By Ryan Davis

More patent suits were filed in 2025 than in any year in the past decade, according to a new report, an increase attorneys said is likely tied to new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office policies that have made it harder to challenge patents.

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ENFORCEMENT

35 AGs Urge Congress Not To Delay Hemp Ban Rollout

By Sam Reisman

A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general is urging Congress not to approve language in a pending continuing resolution that would delay the implementation of a ban on virtually all intoxicating hemp products for one month.

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Brief

IHOP Operators Settle DOL Tip, Overtime Suit

By Benjamin Morse

Illinois IHOP franchise operators and their owner reached a settlement in principle Tuesday with the U.S. Department of Labor in a federal lawsuit accusing them of keeping workers' tips, deleting hours and underpaying overtime.

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LITIGATION

Ace Hardware Seeks To Escape Price-Fixing Suit

By Matthew Perlman

Ace Hardware urged an Illinois federal court to toss a proposed class action accusing the retail cooperative of helping its member stores conspire to fix prices, saying the case attacks services the stores need to compete against Home Depot and others.

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Brief

Udio Can't Shake Off Copyright Suit, But Gets It Moved To NY

By Adam Lidgett

Artificial intelligence music platform Udio has lost its bid to dismiss a proposed class action from a group of songwriters accusing it of copyright infringement, but will now face the claims in New York instead of Chicago.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Why A Class Was Certified In Financial Aid Info-Sharing Case

The recent Illinois federal court decision in Corzo v. Brown University offers key guidance for defendants confronting class certification in antitrust matters, highlighting how typicality can be satisfied despite class members attending different universities, receiving different aid awards and being affected across different time periods, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

How Does In-House Pay Compare? Take The Law360 Survey

How do in-house salaries vary across industries, roles, and organizational revenue? What compensation tools are companies using to lure top talent? Help Law360 Pulse answer these questions and more in this year's In-House Compensation Survey.

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Exclusive

Tyson & Mendes In Talks For Possible PE-Backed MSO Deal

By Emma Cueto

Insurance litigation defense firm Tyson & Mendes LLP confirmed to Law360 Pulse Tuesday that it is in "preliminary discussions" about taking private equity investment via a managed service organization.

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Fla. AG Requests Impeachment Probe Into 11th Circ. Judge

By Carolina Bolado

Florida's Attorney General said Monday he is asking Congress to open an impeachment inquiry into U.S. Circuit Judge Nancy Abudu because of work she did before ascending to the Eleventh Circuit bench for the Southern Poverty Law Center.

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Approach The Bench: Judge Rakoff Doesn't Hide His Views

By Cara Bayles and Steven Trader

During his decades on the bench, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff has witnessed a slew of changes, particularly as technology has brought a rise in cybercrimes, as well as novel questions like whether AI-generated legal advice is privileged. But perhaps the biggest shift was in Rakoff's own views.

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Simpson Thacher Highlights PIPE Client's Financial Troubles

By Madison Arnold

The founder of Patriot National Inc. was likely short millions of dollars when it finalized a private investment in public equity transaction at the center of his malpractice case against Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, according to defense testimony on Tuesday at a Florida state trial.

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Blanche Advances After GOP Sens. Win Written Assurances

By Courtney Bublé

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's nomination for the permanent position Tuesday, after Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, said they would support him.

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Ford Asks 9th Circ. To Revive Lemon Law Fake-Billing Suit

By Linda Chiem

Ford Motor Co. has asked the Ninth Circuit to revive its racketeering lawsuit accusing three attorneys affiliated with Knight Law Group LLP of orchestrating a massive fraudulent billing scheme, saying First Amendment protections don't immunize the attorneys' underlying conduct in California lemon law litigation against the automaker.

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Day Pitney Dropped From Suit Over Ex-Justice's Involvement

By Brian Steele

A Connecticut state court judge allowed Day Pitney LLP to withdraw from a $1.3 million corporate windup feud after the involvement of one of its partners, a former chief justice on the state Supreme Court, came to light, negating the defendants' call for an evidentiary hearing on a motion to disqualify the firm.

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Fried Frank Data Breach Class Action Voluntarily Dismissed

By Matt Perez

A proposed class action data security suit against Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP was voluntarily dismissed on Thursday following a joint motion to stay the case in April to undergo mediation.

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Ashurst Perkins, Nail Co. Lose Doc Bids In Malpractice Suit

By Rachel Riley

Ashurst Perkins Coie won't have to turn over documents related to its predecessor firm's work for an Omani screw and nail manufacturer in international trade proceedings that are now the subject of a legal malpractice case, a Washington court has ruled, while also denying a discovery request from the firm. 

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NC Judge Who Upheld Voter ID Law To Take Senior Status

By Courtney Bublé

Judge Thomas Schroeder of the Middle District of North Carolina has informed the president he will take semi-retired status at a date later in the future.

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Bronx Union Says Striking Atty Faced 'Impossible' Choice

By Andrea Keckley

An attorney with the Bronx Defenders felt she had no other choice but to cross the picket line on Tuesday after an immigration judge ordered her to appear in court and the organization's managers did not commit to covering the proceedings without her, a union representative has told Law360.

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Neighborhood Defender Service Of Harlem Union Ends Strike

By Andrea Keckley

The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem union announced it was returning to work with a tentative deal after more than a week on the picket line.

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LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Ahmad Zavitsanos

Ashurst LLP

Ashurst Perkins

Axinn

Baker Botts

Baker McKenzie

Bricker Graydon

Burns Charest

Conrad & Scherer

Cravath Swaine

Curtis Mallet-Prevost

DLA Piper

DNL Zito

Dacus Law Firm

Dann Law Firm

Day Pitney

Debevoise & Plimpton

Duane Morris

FeganScott

Fish & Richardson

Foley & Lardner

Fried Frank

Garteiser Honea

Gillam Smith

Hogan Lovells

Holland & Knight

Husch Blackwell

Kaplan Fox

Kirkland & Ellis

Knight Law Group

Kopelowitz Ostrow

Korein Tillery

Latham & Watkins

Law Offices of Garrett S. Flynn

Loevy & Loevy

Marshall Dennehey

Mayer Brown

McDermott Will & Schulte

McNaul Ebel

Milbank LLP

Miller Fair

MoloLamken

Morgan & Morgan PA

Morris Nichols

Neal Gerber

Paul Weiss

Pearson Warshaw

Pillsbury Winthrop

Quinn Emanuel

Rabicoff Law

Ramey LLP

Rebar Kelly

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

Stearns Weaver

Susman Godfrey

Tyson & Mendes

Webber & Thies

White & Case

Williams & Connolly

Winston Taylor

Wirtz Law APC

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

APC

Ace Hardware Corp.

Amazon.com Inc.

American Bankruptcy Institute

American Bar Association

Apple Inc.

Bauer Inc.

Brooklyn Defender Services

Cornell University

Epicor Software Corp.

Ford Motor Co.

Fort Point Capital

Grant Thornton LLP

Instagram Inc.

International House of Pancakes LLC

Lex Machina Inc.

LexisNexis Legal & Professional

Live Nation Entertainment Inc.

Lowe's Cos. Inc.

Marriott International Inc.

Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem

Patriot National Inc.

Public Citizen Inc.

RELX PLC

Smart Approaches to Marijuana

Southern Poverty Law Center Inc.

Spotify Technology SA

StubHub Inc.

The Bronx Defenders

The Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

The Home Depot Inc.

United Auto Workers

Walmart Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Administration for Children and Families

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Internal Revenue Service

New York Attorney General's Office

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

U.S. House of Representatives

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court